Census Distribution 1900s
2 Tables display KERNAGHAN and VARIANTS SURNAME Distributions per the following Censuses .. 1901 IRELAND, SCOTLAND, ENGLAND and CANADA, plus 1900 USA. Some brief observations from my analysis of this Census data are included.
BRITISH ISLES 1901
IRELAND 1901
Under 14 spelling variances of Kernaghan there were, in total, 840 people listed in the 1901 Census for Ireland.
PLACES OF RESIDENCE - in the 1901 census there was only a minimal number (7) of the 840 ‘Kernaghans et al’ living outside the 9 Counties of the PROVINCE OF ULSTER (which includes the 6 counties comprising Northern Ireland). Indeed, even within Ulster there was a heavy concentration in the Protestant north-eastern counties of ANTRIM (69%) and DOWN (16%).
It’s interesting to observe different County distributions according to the Spelling variances of Kernaghan. For example, virtually all 286KERNOHANS lived in ANTRIM, while 66% of the CARNAHANs lived in DOWN. The 366 KERNAGHANs (44% of Total) were well spread throughout north east Ulster with 55% in ANTRIM, 25% in DOWN and 14% in ARMAGH
The surprising finding here that there were no people recorded in the north western county of DONEGAL, from whence the Kernaghans originated.
While the surname CARNAHAN is by far the most predominant of the ‘KERNAGHAN et al’ surnames In the USA Census of 1900 (it comprises 84% of the 3,000 named Kernaghan variances) it was not particularly common in any of the 1901 Censuses covering Ireland, England and Scotland. For Ireland, there were only 24 Carnahans recorded (or 3% of the Total), far outnumbered by the more local common-spelling, CARNAGHAN.
RELIGION – this concentration in the Protestant-majority counties of Antrim and Down also reflects in the low count of Catholic ‘Kernaghans et al’. Less than 5% of the 840 professed to be Catholic.
SCOTLAND 1901
NAMES – the largest of the Kernaghans spelling variances in the 1901 Scottish Census was CARNACHAN which is more a Scottish style spelling (and pronunciation). Surprisingly the most commonly spelt format in both Ireland and England, ie KERNAGHAN, ran 3rd largest (and by quite a margin) in Scotland’s census.
PLACES OF BIRTH - in the 1901 census there were 50 ‘Kernaghans et al’ living in Scotland that stated their Place of Birth as IRELAND. Further, 26 of these Irish-born people had 40 children born in England, thus the Irish emigrant connection accounts directly for over 40% of the Kernaghans et al recorded in the 1901 Census.
However when excluding the 59 Carnachans (largest and more Scottish group) which had only a small number of Irish-born people (4) and children of Irish-born (4), the remainder of our population had 52% of persons who were either born in Ireland or were kids of Irish-born people.
For 7 spelling variances of Kernaghan there were, in total, 130 people listed in the 1901 Census.
PLACES OF BIRTH - in the 1901 census there were 26 ‘Kernaghans et al’ living in England that stated their Place of Birth as IRELAND. Further, these Irish-born people had 28 children born in England, thus the Irish emigrant connection accounts directly for over 40% of the Kernaghans et al recorded in the 1901 Census.
PLACES OF RESIDENCE - the 2 largest Names (see above - Kernaghan and Kernahan) each had 55% Irish emigrant connection and here the large majority lived in the North Western counties of Lancashire, Cheshire and Yorkshire.
Those with spelling commencing Carn..... predominantly lived in South East England and, with only 1 out of the 16 being born in Ireland, this suggests their Irish ancestry goes further back.
NAMES – Amazingly a whopping 83.5% of the total Variants Population fell under 1 name - CARNAHAN, with a count of 2,457 persons. The next largest Surname was KERNAGHAN with only 3.5%.
IRISH-BORN - Only 10 out of those 2,457 CARNAHANs in the US Census disclosed that they were born in IRELAND, which compares to the remainder of the KERNAGHAN Surname Variants population which had 8% as Irish-born, or children of Irish-born. The surname KERNAGHAN itself had 14 out of 103 as Irish-born or children of Irish-born.
STATE DISTRIBUTION - My Data file allows for breakdown by State of Residence and with the CARNAHANs count of 2,457 persons, greatest numbers were in Pennsylvania (513), Ohio (308), Indiana (219) and Illinois (213). That contrasts to the combined KERNAGHAN / KERNAHANs who, out of a 186 Total, had only 4 persons recorded in Pennsylvania, 2 each in Ohio and Illinois and Nil in Indiana. Their largest count was for New York with 62 (ie 33% of Total) followed by Missouri with 21.
For 10 spelling variances of Kernaghan there were, in total, 334 people listed in the 1901 Census.
NAMES – As with the United States Census of 1900, the most prominent surname was CARNAHAN but, at 44% of the Total of the Variants population, nowhere near as overwhelming as in the US where 83% of Total number were CARNAHANs. Again the second largest Surname was KERNAGHAN at 20% of Total.
Canada’s Census did not capture details of Place of Birth.